OrangeRakoon wrote:I mean don't blame me, this is the first AC game I've been able to play on Sony hardware

Orange... you don’t have a 3DS? My mind is being shattered by the demise of your reputation... what is happening here?!?

Oh no, I do have a 3DS (and a DS), but they've always taken back seat to my Vita/PSP, and I got them both late in the lifespan (DS lite for Phantom Hourglass, New 3DS for Monster Hunter 4U). The Switch is the return to Nintendo being on top with handhelds since the GBA imo - so if there is a Switch Animal Crossing, after Pocket Camp I think I'll be there day one!

Deleted this pretty quickly. As far as I can see there's almost no content at the moment. You spend your time cycling through rote dialogue to improve friendship, occasionally fishing or shaking trees to get bonuses. Nothing you do really matters, and every piece of furniture is simply a way to attract more animals so you can continue cycling through new rote conversions. There's no reason to keep playing.

Tafdolphin wrote:Deleted this pretty quickly. As far as I can see there's almost no content at the moment. You spend your time cycling through rote dialogue to improve friendship, occasionally fishing or shaking trees to get bonuses. Nothing you do really matters, and every piece of furniture is simply a way to attract more animals so you can continue cycling through new rote conversions. There's no reason to keep playing.

Disappointing.

What's the reason to keep playing normal animal crossing then? Because a lot of what you said applies to that.

Fade wrote:What's the reason to keep playing normal animal crossing then? Because a lot of what you said applies to that.

I feel the difference is a combination of depth and feel, Fade. I thoroughly enjoyed Pocket Camp for a while - playing around two hours per day for a week - but it becomes apparent that the actions and chats don't, for me, deliver the satisfaction of playing, say, New Leaf.

In Pocket, the characters say the same things regardless of personality whereas in Leaf they have their own individual ways of talking. In Pocket, actions are limited to shuffling certain items between characters whilst in Leaf you get a sense that it is you who decides what to tackle and when. Some aspects are well done but, overall, it feels cut down.

As a free-to-start game, Pocket isn’t bad and it is fun for a few days but I feel that anyone who is familiar with - and enjoyed - the other AC games will probably find the narrowed vision fairly limiting.

OrangeRakoon wrote:...There are unique lines between "types" as well (sporty, natural, etc.), right?

You’re right, Orange - I think it is each personality type that shares the same lines. It’s not bad but, having returned to New Leaf to see if I had rose-tinted views about that game, I feel the Leaf version has far more substance to it.

Part of the challenge for me is that, in my mind, I had built up Pocket Camp to be the next big game in the AC franchise and... well, I think it is quite nice for a mobile game but it is also just a flavour or two of a “full” AC game. I can understand the reasons for that but it doesn’t really wash away a tinge of disappointment from my perspective.

Tafdolphin wrote:Deleted this pretty quickly. As far as I can see there's almost no content at the moment. You spend your time cycling through rote dialogue to improve friendship, occasionally fishing or shaking trees to get bonuses. Nothing you do really matters, and every piece of furniture is simply a way to attract more animals so you can continue cycling through new rote conversions. There's no reason to keep playing.

Disappointing.

What's the reason to keep playing normal animal crossing then? Because a lot of what you said applies to that.

The recent Waypoint podcast summed it up really well: AC on the 3DS is all about routine punctuated by small surprises, little occurrences that form anecdotes that make the routine enjoyable. You might find a rare fossil and visit the museum, or maybe you'll get a visit from an animal you weren't expecting that ends in a joke.

There's none of that here. There are no surprises and no hope of anything interesting happening.

Doing requests sometimes nets you candy canes which can be used to craft christmas themed furniture. There are event goals under timed goals, which is nice as I only have 4 or 5 of the stretch goals remaining.

I’ve had an odd relationship with the game... it’s been a “like / love / leave / return” journey. There are faults... but, when I start playing it, I get hooked. The little cycles of activities and tasks are addictive. Even though I know that New Leaf is better, it’s the online, connected elements in this that keep me playing.

I do enjoy Pocket Camp but yeah there's not much to do on it; I just kept it installed on my phone and boot it up whenever I want to do something between games. It didn't help when you've done requests for available animals per three hour cycle there's no reason to keep playing; no matter how long you've been inactive for unless you wanna spend money on leaf tickets to get request cards